Star of yearlong Orlando celebration? Charles Dickens!

Matthew J. Palm, Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer

If "Charles Dickens" conjures up frantic nights sweating over essays about 800-page tomes, banish that ghost of school days past. A yearlong "What the Dickens" celebration across Central Florida will feature pub crawls, a Victorian feast, movies, plays, art exhibits and more.

No reading is required.

But why would 21st-century Orlando spend all of 2014 honoring the British author who lived during the 1800s?

Says organizer Terry Olson: "Because it's going to be fun."

There are many reasons Dickens remains one of the most revered figures in English literature, experts say, not the least of which is "A Christmas Carol," the holiday classic in which ghosts teach miserly Ebenezer Scrooge the joys of compassion and love.

Orlando artist Jason Hunt first encountered Dickens by watching "A Christmas Carol" as a child. Nearly 60 years later, his "writings continue to inspire me to never give up and to keep moving forward," Hunt said.

"Many of us grow up with Dickens in all the many wonderful adaptations and versions — that wonderful Muppets 'Christmas Carol,' for example — so he is part of our cultural DNA," said Jenny Hartley, president of the London-based International Dickens Fellowship. "I think Dickens' sense of the absurd in ordinary life, and his enjoyment of it, still resonates with us."

Enjoyment is key to the local plans for "What the Dickens."

"Dickens was interested in everything," said Olson, who heads the Orange County Arts & Cultural Affairs office. "It's only natural if we're celebrating Charles Dickens' times, life, work and issues that it's broad-ranging so everybody can enjoy it."

Kicking things off this month are a film series at the downtown Orlando Public Library, an art exhibit of Dickens characters by Hunt, and the largest production ever undertaken by the Orlando Shakespeare Theater — a two-part adaptation of "Nicholas Nickleby" that spans 6 1/2 hours. Dickens wrote the novel in 1838-39.

It was Jim Helsinger, the Shakes artistic director, who suggested "What the Dickens" to Olson. The two had previously collaborated on a multigroup celebration of playwright Oscar Wilde in 1999.

"All arts organizations want to bring great art to Central Florida, but when we do so in isolation we don't have the same impact we can as a group," Helsinger said. "It changes the power of the arts in our community when we come together."

The Shakespeare troupe, Mad Cow Theatre and the English Speaking Union are collaborating on a program in which an actor playing Dickens will visit schools to introduce his works to students.

Olson may offer neighborhood walking tours with social-service agencies in honor of Dickens' crusades for the disenfranchised people of his era.

"Dickens really influenced society at a time when it was very polarized. Greed ruled; the poor had nothing," Olson said. "His writing helped shift society to be more humane. It would be fabulous if our arts had that power today."

"Dickens Characters by Jason Hunt": The Orlando artist sketches Dickens characters as he imagined them in his childhood. At the Orange County Administration Center, 201 S. Rosalind Ave., through Jan. 31. Free.

Dickens-inspired Trivia Nights: You don't need to be a Dickens expert to play. First Tuesday of each month, beginning at 7 p.m. Jan. 7, at Stardust Video & Café, 1842 Winter Park Road, Orlando. It costs $10 per table/team to participate, with half the proceeds going to the winning team. The other half will be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank. Other charities will benefit in the future.

"Nicholas Nickleby": Part 1 of the Orlando Shakespeare production opens Jan. 24; part 2 follows on Jan. 31. Performances run in repertory through March 9 at the Lowndes Shakespeare Center, 812 E. Rollins St., Orlando. Tickets are $17-$40 for each part; there are also packages that include seeing both parts in one day with a specialty dinner served in between. Call 407-447-1700.